Bangladesh interim assistant coach Mohammad Salahuddin believes Shadman Islam has finally figured out the right approach to batting in Test cricket after the opener remained unbeaten on 99 on the opening day of the first Test against the West Indies on Wednesday, October 28. Bangladesh ended the day at 213/3 after a disciplined effort from the visitors' bowling attack.
Shadman looked set to register his third Test century but fell just short of the milestone as the umpires called time on the day's play. His inability to convert promising starts into big scores had previously attracted criticism, making his unbeaten knock even more significant.
Salahuddin said the entire Bangladesh dressing room was hoping to see Shadman reach the three-figure mark. He also expressed hope that the innings would help the opener understand what it takes to convert a good start into a century.
“The whole team is nervous at the end of the day. We all wanted him to get 100 because in Test cricket he's played about 30 Tests and only scored 2 centuries,” Salahuddin was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz.
“I think this number should have been higher. I hope this innings helps him understand more about what it takes to actually score 100. And I think this innings can help him a lot in his later life,” he added.
Salahuddin was particularly impressed with the way Shadman handled the conditions and managed difficult periods during his innings. The Bangladesh opener avoided unnecessary risks and remained patient at the crease, allowing him to build a substantial knock against a disciplined bowling attack.
The coach noted that Shadman had previously produced several promising half-centuries but struggled to turn them into bigger scores. He believes the opener's latest performance could help him develop greater consistency in the longest format.
“I would say he assessed the wicket very well and if you look at the whole innings he did not play too many risky shots. Sometimes we may play risky shots or there may be periods when you have tough times. At that time, we may play loose shots sometimes. But I think he assesses the wicket and passes through difficult times and then plays the innings under his control,” he said.
“I have seen an innings like this from him after a long time because he had 50-60 in many innings but it was not getting long and so I think he may have worked on that too and that is why the innings may have been long and I hope he can make it longer,” Salahuddin added.
Salahuddin credits Mohammad Ashraful for Shadman's progress
Salahuddin also credited former Bangladesh batter Mohammad Ashraful for the work he has done with the team's batters over the past year. Salahuddin joined the national setup as an interim assistant coach after being asked to replace Ashraful as batting coach for the two-Test series against the West Indies.
He explained that there was limited time to make changes ahead of the series and acknowledged that Ashraful's previous work had played an important role in shaping the batters' approach. Salahuddin also suggested that Shadman may have worked on his own batting process to address his struggles with converting half-centuries into hundreds.
“I think he may have realized himself about his batting or maybe he has talked to the coach about it because his conversion rate is not really that high,” Salahuddin said.
“He played some dominating 50s in many innings but he could not make them long. Maybe he had a problem in some process. I think it (the innings against West Indies) will help him and I think he is finding out for himself what he should be doing at that time,” he added.
Salahuddin reiterated that Ashraful deserved the credit for the groundwork done with the batters, highlighting his contribution over the past year.
“Since he (Ashraful) did a lot of work in the past, we didn't get much time and here we don't have much to change. So I think the whole credit goes to Ash. He has worked with the batsmen for the last year and if their mentality has helped in any small way or in a big way, then credit should go to him,” he concluded.
